Malta pledges €110,000 to Palestinian cause

Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has pledged €110,000 as financial support to the Palestinian cause during a meeting with Palestine's Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah.

Muscat, who met Hamdallah at Ramallah, has become the first Maltese prime minister to visit Palestine.

Reiterating Malta's commitment towards the Palestinian cause, Muscat pledged €110k as financial support. Malta has consistently supported the Palestinian cause through several contributions throughout the years.

Referring to the Middle East and the current situation in the Mediterranean, Muscat explained Malta and Italy's involvement. He insisted that Malta was at the forefront to save lives in this tragedy.

Unfortunately, he added, up to date no one could confirm the exact number of Palestinian casualties.

On behalf of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Prime Minister Hamdallah thanked Malta and Italy for their help in the rescue operations and for saving lives.

Referring to the Palestinian-Israeli peace process, Hamdallah said that "we have the political will to reach a final settlement. I am afraid that this is the final chance. We have been waiting a lot for peach and hope".

Muscat emphasized Malta's historical commitment for finding a comprehensive, just and lasting solution - "based on a two-state solution where the Palestinian and Israeli people live side by side".

Malta and Palestine also agreed to set up a joint committee to work on areas of mutual interests, such as education, tourism and infrastructure.

During the meeting, Muscat invited Hamdallah to send a political delegation to Malta to kickstart cooperation in economic and trade relations, tourism and infrastructure projects.